Rooster acting weird!?!

[doodlebug0310]

I'm fairly new to owning my OWN chickens and posting here. I've been raised around them and I've never seen this behavior. We have a rooster that's roughly 6-7 months old. We got him free with our hens. He's a cochin frizzle. He does not crow. Being that he's 2-3 months younger than my hens they like to chase him occasionally. 2 of my hens that lay are much nicer to him. My polish is the only one that chases him now. She chases our dog and squirrels so it's not just him. I figured he's too "hen pecked" to crow? All my chickens are free range (I own 4 including him) and have feed 24/7. There are several stations for him to get feed including me going out and throwing it out daily. He's thin. He also walks sideways sometimes and lifts his legs really high when walking sometimes. He has acted like he's mentally handicapped from the get go. It's not cold where we live (GA), he has access to food/ clean water 24/7, a nice coop to roost, and plenty to forage. I honestly don't know what more we can do for him. I'm at a loss.

Edited to add that I worm them and that he has no physical evidence of being hurt.

 

[nchls school]

It happens sometimes that a bird is not right. One thing you could do is trim the feathers on his feet so he possibly walks better. We had to do this with our favoelle rooster.

 

[doodlebug0310]

Still getting the hang of this forum- He doesn't really have any feet feathers.... I can try trimming what little feathers he has. Thanks for the reply!

 

[doodlebug0310]

Well... I guess he does have some feathers around his feet. I'll trim them and see if that works. Here's a photo of him from November.

 

[Shamo Hybrid]

So, you think there's something mentally wrong with him and not soo much physical?

 

[doodlebug0310]

Shamo Hybrid I'm leaning more towards that than anything else. Just wondering if there's anything I can try/ do. Or if anyone has seen or heard of this before. At this point I don't see him making it if we tried to rehome him. Bigger chickens would kill him. He's the weeniest rooster I've ever met. He doesn't crow or even try to service my hens. I also noticed that sometimes he shakes. Not like a seizure but like he's cold (even though it's not cold).

 

[doodlebug0310]

There are no outward signs of illness. No sneezing, coughing, runny nose, no diarrhea..... I also worm them as recommended. Nothing else amiss.

 

[Chickassan]

He's a frizzle, sometimes their feathers will lead them to have an awkward gate and stance as they're growing. He also may actually be a little cold as he does not hold heat as efficently as a smooth featherd bird. He's likely not eating enough, multiple stations or not young fellas often shy away from the bowl if there is even one senior hen near. His crowing will happen, but for the moment he's probably scared stiff to even attempt it. He's odd, but he'll adjust.

 

[doodlebug0310]

Good info to know. I have never owned or even seen frizzles until we bought ours.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

roughly 6-7 months old. He's thin. He also walks sideways sometimes and lifts his legs really high when walking sometimes. He has acted like he's mentally handicapped from the get go.
Edited to add that I worm them and that he has no physical evidence of being hurt.

Shamo Hybrid I'm leaning more towards that than anything else. Just wondering if there's anything I can try/ do. Or if anyone has seen or heard of this before. At this point I don't see him making it if we tried to rehome him. Bigger chickens would kill him. He's the weeniest rooster I've ever met. He doesn't crow or even try to service my hens. I also noticed that sometimes he shakes. Not like a seizure but like he's cold (even though it's not cold).

There are no outward signs of illness. No sneezing, coughing, runny nose, no diarrhea..... I also worm them as recommended. Nothing else amiss.

What do you worm with?
You have any other cockerels or roosters?

6-7months old is still pretty young! What are your "big chickens" and how old are they?
Mature hens and older pullets will put him in his place until he gets older. He's little too, so if you have Large Fowl hens, they may not accept him.

What are you feeding him?
If you have a video of him walking that would be good - upload to youtube, then provide us a link.

I would check his crop to make sure it's emptying overnight. Walking sideways...could be neurological - provide him with poultry vitamins that contain vitamins E and B1 or you can give him 400IU of Vitamin E daily along with 1/4 tablet of human B-complex vitamins. Egg or tuna would be a good treat for him and that will give him Selenium.

If he's shivering like he's cold, put him where it's warmer - I don't have any kind of breed like that but do as suggested by @Chickassan and provide him with a little heat or some shelter - see if that makes a difference.